The Deal by Elle Kennedy

The Deal by Elle Kennedy
The Romance That Begins the Off-Campus Series

The Deal by Elle Kennedy is the first novel in the bestselling Off-Campus series, an interconnected collection of college romances centred around hockey players, friendships, campus life and complicated relationships.

The story follows Hannah Wells, a smart and determined college student, and Garrett Graham, one of Briar University’s star hockey players.

Hannah is doing well academically, but there is one area of her life she finds much harder to navigate: romance.

She finally meets someone she is genuinely attracted to, but getting his attention is proving difficult.

Garrett has an entirely different problem.

His future depends on hockey, but his grades are threatening everything he has worked for.

When he discovers that Hannah can help him academically, he proposes a deal.

She tutors him.

In return, Garrett helps her make another guy jealous.

It sounds simple.

It does not stay simple for long.

Sourcebooks describes the novel as the story of Hannah tutoring Garrett in exchange for a pretend date, only for their arrangement to develop into something much more real.

Hannah Wells

Hannah is intelligent, sarcastic and independent.

She knows what she wants academically and is not intimidated by Garrett’s popularity.

That makes their early interactions especially entertaining.

Unlike many people around him, Hannah is not impressed simply because Garrett is a successful athlete.

She agrees to help him because the arrangement offers something useful to her too.

Beneath her confidence, however, Hannah carries painful experiences from her past that have affected how she approaches trust, intimacy and relationships.

The novel treats this history as an important part of her emotional journey rather than simply as a plot device.

Garrett Graham

Garrett Graham is one of Briar University’s most talented hockey players.

His goal is simple:

Play professional hockey.

But maintaining his place on the team requires him to keep his grades high enough.

When one particular class becomes a serious problem, Hannah suddenly becomes very important to him.

At first, Garrett approaches the arrangement practically.

He needs tutoring.

Hannah needs help attracting someone else.

Everybody wins.

Except Garrett soon realises that pretending to date Hannah is becoming much harder than expected.

Fake Dating

One of the strongest romance tropes in The Deal is fake dating.

Hannah wants to attract the attention of another man.

Garrett believes appearing interested in her will help.

The arrangement therefore begins without either of them planning to develop serious feelings.

That setup creates:

• Banter
• Awkward situations
• Jealousy
• Growing attraction
• Emotional intimacy
• A gradual shift from pretending to something real

The trope is especially effective because Hannah and Garrett already have strong personalities and challenge each other constantly.

Tutoring Romance

The tutoring arrangement is equally important.

Garrett needs Hannah’s academic help to protect his hockey future.

This forces them to spend time together before the fake-dating element even becomes central.

Their relationship develops through conversation, studying and repeated contact rather than instant attraction alone.

That gives the romance more room to grow naturally.

College Hockey Romance

The Deal is also one of the best-known examples of modern college hockey romance.

Hockey is central to Garrett’s identity, friendships and future plans.

The sport also connects the wider Off-Campus series, with Garrett’s teammates becoming major characters in later books.

Readers who enjoy sports-romance settings will find:

• Team dynamics
• Locker-room friendships
• College athletics
• Career pressure
• Competitive personalities
• Athlete/student balance

Hannah and Garrett’s Chemistry

One of the main reasons the novel became so popular is the dynamic between Hannah and Garrett.

They tease each other.

They disagree.

They help one another.

And neither is immediately willing to admit when their arrangement begins changing.

Garrett initially sees Hannah as the solution to an academic problem.

Hannah initially sees Garrett as a useful way to make someone else notice her.

But familiarity changes their assumptions.

The more time they spend together, the harder it becomes to maintain the emotional distance required for their original deal.

Themes in The Deal

The novel explores themes including:

• Friendship
• Trust
• Love
• Trauma
• Healing
• College life
• Academic pressure
• Sports ambition
• Family expectations
• Communication
• Consent
• Emotional vulnerability
• Moving beyond past experiences

Sensitive Themes

The Deal includes discussion of sexual assault and trauma as part of Hannah’s past.

These subjects influence her relationship with intimacy and trust.

Readers who may be sensitive to sexual violence or trauma-related content should be aware of this before reading.

The novel is fiction and should not be treated as a substitute for professional trauma or mental-health support.

Off-Campus Series Reading Order

The Deal is officially Book 1 in Elle Kennedy’s Off-Campus series. Sourcebooks confirms the series placement.

Recommended reading order:

1. The Deal
2. The Mistake
3. The Score
4. The Goal
5. The Legacy

The series is interconnected, with each main novel focusing on a different couple while recurring characters continue appearing throughout the books.

Who May Enjoy This Book

The Deal may especially appeal to readers who enjoy:

• College romance
• Hockey romance
• Fake dating
• Friends-to-lovers elements
• Sports romance
• Tutoring romance
• Banter-heavy relationships
• New Adult fiction
• Interconnected romance series
• Character-driven contemporary romance

About Elle Kennedy

Elle Kennedy is a bestselling romance author known for the Off-Campus, Briar U and other contemporary romance series.

The Deal is one of her best-known novels and introduced readers to the world of Briar University hockey.

The series later expanded through multiple interconnected romances and has remained particularly popular among readers of New Adult and sports romance.

For readers looking for a witty, emotional college romance with strong chemistry, sports, friendship and fake dating, The Deal is the natural starting point.